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"Indegenous Documents in Asia" (Special Subject)
Application Announcement

Application Announcement

Comments by Selection Committee Chair

Grant Framework

Application period	Friday, March 20 to Wednesday, May 13. 2009
Amount of grants	Up to ¥5 million per project
Total amount of grants	¥30 million
Period of grants	One or Two years beginning November 1, 2009
Selection of grants	Decisions taken at the Board of Directors Meeting in autumn

Program Aims and Objectives

This outline is based on the Grant Year 2009. Regarding the Grant Year 2010, please check its detail in the end of March 2010.

From fiscal 2005 through fiscal 2008, the Toyota Foundation made Special Subject Research Grants for "Preservation, Compilation, and Annotation of Indigenous Documents in ' Regions of Asia." These grants supported projects aiming to preserve, compile, and create annotated versions of palm-leaf and other ancient documents found in the region between the Chinese and Indian civilizational spheres, which includes Laos, Myanmar (Burma), and China's Yunnan region. This fiscal year we are reforming this program along the two following lines.

1. We are renaming this program as "Preservation, Utilization, and Transmission of Indigenous Documents in Asia." By removing the word ', we expanded the program's reach from East and Southeast Asia to actively seek applications from South, Central, and West Asia as well. In addition, the expanded program can also address the importance of documents held by minority ethnic groups living in central regions of Asia's civilizational spheres, not just the peripheries.
   
2. We are broadening the definition of the concept of "indigenous documents," which now includes a full range of materials written by hand, including ancient maps and letters. This change was inspired by the fact that the documents worth preserving and putting to use may vary greatly depending on the region in which they are found.
   

Recent years have seen advances in digitized information technology, the development of regional economies throughout Asia, and increasing regional integration. The Toyota Foundation hopes that these grants, through the preservation and application of indigenous documents, will help the people in communities where they are found to examine their own past, gain emotional sustenance in the present, and transmit the content of the documents to future generations.

Grant Framework

Amount of Grants

-A maximum grant of ¥5 million is awarded per project.
-The total amount of grants for fiscal 2009 is ¥30 million.

Period of grants

-One-year project: November 1, 2009 to October 30, 2010
-Two-year project: November 1, 2009 to October 30, 2011

Determination of grants

Formal decisions on the selection of projects for grants are made by the Board of Directors at its meeting in the autumn of the applicable fiscal year on the basis of deliberations by the selection committee in July and August. Applicants will be informed in writing as to whether their application has been successful or not following the decision. There may be delays due to the postal service.

Grant implementation

Once a grant has been decided, the foundation and the project leader will exchange memorandums, on the basis of which the grant will be implemented. The project leader will submit a progress report and an accounting report during the grant period and a final report and other documents at the end of the grant period.

Incidental and General Administrative Expenses

Grants provided under this program may not be used to cover incidental expenditures by the grant recipient's organization or general administrative (overhead) expenses.

Grant Framework

Eligibility

• There are no restrictions based on nationality or affiliation.
  

• Applicants must have a certain level of management ability (such as schedule management, cultivation of a common approach to problems within the project team, coordination of team members' roles, and communication with the Foundation).
  

Project Eligibility

Projects involving the preservation of the region's indigenous documents

-Microfilming, digitization, and other forms of preservation

Projects involving the utilization and transmission of the region's indigenous documents

-Cataloging, transcribing, translating, annotating, and publishing facsimiles of documents
-Holding workshops or symposiums; using documents as educational material
-Sharing of preservation techniques and know-how, etc.

How to Obtain Application Guidelines and Project Proposal Forms

To download the form

Please download the application form from this page.
(File available from March 20 to May 13)

The application period has expired.

To receive an application form by post

Send your request by postcard or fax to the Toyota Foundation (at the address/number below) no later than April 30, 2009. Please indicate (1) the name of the program (for example, "Request for Research Grant Program application form"), (2) whether you require the Japanese or the English version, and (3) the address to which the form should be sent.

Application deadline

Applications must be postmarked no later than Wednesday, May 13, 2009.

How to apply

Applicants in Japan should send the application form by registered mail or another delivery service that leaves a record of delivery, such as a courier service.
Overseas applicants should use a courier service or EMS (Express Mail Service).

Points to note

• Applications must be filed on the provided application forms only. Do not add pages.
  
• As the application forms will be copied in the selection process, please do not attach the form sheets, such as with staples or glue.
  
• If you format your application by pasting print-outs onto the form, please make a copy of the complete form and send the copy.
  
• Application forms should be printed on one side of the paper; please do not use double-sided printing.
  
• Do not bring your application to the Toyota Foundation in person or submit it by fax or e-mail.
  
• Please submit only one copy of the application form. No additional documents should be included with an application.
  
• Applications cannot be replaced or updated once they are submitted.
  
• Applications postmarked after Wednesday, May 13, 2009 will not be accepted.
  
• Submitted applications will not be returned.
  
• The "application number" space at the top right of the application form is for Toyota Foundation use. We will mail you a postcard by early June to inform you of your application number.
  
• If any statement in an application is found to be untrue or misleading, the application may be rejected, and even if the project proposal has been approved, the grant may be cancelled.
  
• The Toyota Foundation will not respond to questions about the reasons for its approval or rejection of project proposals.
  

Frequently Asked Questions

To read frequently asked questions about the Special Subject "Preservation, Utilization, and Transmission of Indigenous Documents in Asia," please see this FAQ or the Information for Applicants.

Address to send

Asian Neighbors Program, "Indigenous Documents in Asia"
The Toyota Foundation
Box 236, Shinjuku Mitsui Bldg. 37F
2-1-1 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku
Tokyo 163-0437, Japan

Applicants must ensure that their applications are sent by the deadline, Saturday, May 10, 2008. This is the final deadline for posting; applications postmarked after this date will not be accepted.

Privacy Notice

The personal information supplied by applicants will be used to screen and select projects, to produce statistics, and for administrative purposes, such as contacting the person in question. It will not be used for any purpose other than those specified without the permission of the individual concerned, except where allowed by law.
For details, please see the Privacy Notice.